MSU business manager accused of embezzlement

STARKVILLE — The business manager for the office of vice president and provost of Mississippi State University has been accused of embezzlement.

The Commercial Dispatch reports 49-year-old Beth Sykes Collum is accused of embezzling from the Mississippi Horsepark Association. She has been the treasurer of the association since November 2008 and business manager at MSU since September 2010.

Collum is free on $10,000 bond following her Friday arrest by the Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Department.

Investigators say the amount allegedly stolen from the organization is unclear, but is considered a significant amount.

When asked if an internal audit would be conducted in Collum’s department, MSU spokesman Sid Salter declined comment, citing legal reasons. He also declined to say if Collum was still employed with the university.